Need help buying a TC2!!!
03-30-2011, 11:41 AM
#1
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Waynesboro, PA
Posts: 20
Need help buying a TC2!!!
Hey Guys,
I am pretty sure I will be trading in my 2008 Lexus IS250 6 speed for a new TC. The reason being I am tired of paying 600 a month for my Lexus and up keep is not cheap at all. The only problem is with downgrading to a TC I am not sure I will be as happy as I was with my Lexus. Can anyone on here list me the PROS and CONS of the TC? What things made you buy the car and after owning it what things would you like to change about the car.
I plan on using the car as my daily driver I drive 80 miles round trip every day.
- How smooth is the ride?
- I heard the last scion had problem with interior rattle was this been fixed on the 2011?
- I was leaning towards a manual but, my last car (the IS250) had manual but Toyota royally screwed up buy cheeping out and putting the Toyota Tacoma 6 speed tranny is the car. Yes, guys that not a typo they used a damn truck tranny for the car to save money but, the thing was bullet proof.
- Also I have been looking for a dark metallic gray color but, doesn’t seem like Toyota offers it anymore is this true?
So for all the questions guys but, I just want to know as much about the car as possible up front before I test drive and buy this vehicle.
Thanks,
Ryan
I am pretty sure I will be trading in my 2008 Lexus IS250 6 speed for a new TC. The reason being I am tired of paying 600 a month for my Lexus and up keep is not cheap at all. The only problem is with downgrading to a TC I am not sure I will be as happy as I was with my Lexus. Can anyone on here list me the PROS and CONS of the TC? What things made you buy the car and after owning it what things would you like to change about the car.
I plan on using the car as my daily driver I drive 80 miles round trip every day.
- How smooth is the ride?
- I heard the last scion had problem with interior rattle was this been fixed on the 2011?
- I was leaning towards a manual but, my last car (the IS250) had manual but Toyota royally screwed up buy cheeping out and putting the Toyota Tacoma 6 speed tranny is the car. Yes, guys that not a typo they used a damn truck tranny for the car to save money but, the thing was bullet proof.
- Also I have been looking for a dark metallic gray color but, doesn’t seem like Toyota offers it anymore is this true?
So for all the questions guys but, I just want to know as much about the car as possible up front before I test drive and buy this vehicle.
Thanks,
Ryan
03-30-2011, 01:40 PM
#2
Junior Member
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 17
Well i feel you on the downgrading thing, I felt that way too but I didn't wanna pay for 2 cars anymore so I traded them both in. Idk about your lexus but the TC is great on gas, insurance is cheap, the 6-speed is gonna be way different from any other manual car you have driven but its still is nice, I have 1k+ miles on mine now with still no interior rattling noises. And as far as the color thing I'm pretty sure they do. Go to scion.com, build your TC, pick the color. that shows everything they offer. And its a very smooth ride.
03-30-2011, 02:03 PM
#3
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Waynesboro, PA
Posts: 20
Well i feel you on the downgrading thing, I felt that way too but I didn't wanna pay for 2 cars anymore so I traded them both in. Idk about your lexus but the TC is great on gas, insurance is cheap, the 6-speed is gonna be way different from any other manual car you have driven but its still is nice, I have 1k+ miles on mine now with still no interior rattling noises. And as far as the color thing I'm pretty sure they do. Go to scion.com, build your TC, pick the color. that shows everything they offer. And its a very smooth ride.
03-30-2011, 02:34 PM
#5
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Waynesboro, PA
Posts: 20
03-30-2011, 02:37 PM
#6
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Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Houston, TX
Posts: 588
Hey, the tC was a first car for me so I don't know if I can answer any of your comparison questions but I'll try my best to give you a feel for the tC.
From my perspective, the ride is pretty smooth on stock springs and road noise is pretty good for a 20k car. You do start to hear a decent amount of road noise once you start going 70+ on the highway. I usually have to turn the stereo up 5 or so notches on the volume when I go on the highway as opposed to city driving.
There isn't much rattle in the interior except for the plastic pieces by the window controls. If you have the bass turned up on the stereo it'll start rattling. There is a temporary fix which involves putting a piece of paper in there, but no permanent solution has been addressed.
The manual transmission in this car seems to be pretty good except sometimes it refuses to go into first in which case you just release the clutch and try again. There's a thread about it on the forums and apparently it seems to be a common trait in manual transmissions. Although I'm sure the flywheel in the tC is not nearly as heavy as the one in the IS, it has an electronic throttle control so it does hold onto the revs a little bit after you let go of the pedal, but I believe that can be fixed by using the 'Sprint Booster' which increases the sensitivity of your throttle input.
There is the 'magnetic gray' color which I believe may be what you are looking for, but other than that there's just black, silver, cement, crimson red, and nautical blue.
From my perspective, the ride is pretty smooth on stock springs and road noise is pretty good for a 20k car. You do start to hear a decent amount of road noise once you start going 70+ on the highway. I usually have to turn the stereo up 5 or so notches on the volume when I go on the highway as opposed to city driving.
There isn't much rattle in the interior except for the plastic pieces by the window controls. If you have the bass turned up on the stereo it'll start rattling. There is a temporary fix which involves putting a piece of paper in there, but no permanent solution has been addressed.
The manual transmission in this car seems to be pretty good except sometimes it refuses to go into first in which case you just release the clutch and try again. There's a thread about it on the forums and apparently it seems to be a common trait in manual transmissions. Although I'm sure the flywheel in the tC is not nearly as heavy as the one in the IS, it has an electronic throttle control so it does hold onto the revs a little bit after you let go of the pedal, but I believe that can be fixed by using the 'Sprint Booster' which increases the sensitivity of your throttle input.
There is the 'magnetic gray' color which I believe may be what you are looking for, but other than that there's just black, silver, cement, crimson red, and nautical blue.
03-30-2011, 02:49 PM
#8
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 361
- How smooth is the ride?
i dont think it will be as smooth as a lexus
- I heard the last scion had problem with interior rattle was this been fixed on the 2011?
the speakers on door might cause rattle, depending on the bass
- I was leaning towards a manual but, my last car (the IS250) had manual but Toyota royally screwed up buy cheeping out and putting the Toyota Tacoma 6 speed tranny is the car. Yes, guys that not a typo they used a damn truck tranny for the car to save money but, the thing was bullet proof.
if your not in traffic during that 80 miles, manual might be best. i live in an urban area where every mile is a traffic jam so i went auto.
- Also I have been looking for a dark metallic gray color but, doesn’t seem like Toyota offers it anymore is this true?
the first gen scion had flint mica which is actually lighter than the tc2's magnetic gray metallic. its the same dark gray as the camry and alot of other dark grays toyota has. it also has metallic flakes giving the color more depth.
i dont think it will be as smooth as a lexus
- I heard the last scion had problem with interior rattle was this been fixed on the 2011?
the speakers on door might cause rattle, depending on the bass
- I was leaning towards a manual but, my last car (the IS250) had manual but Toyota royally screwed up buy cheeping out and putting the Toyota Tacoma 6 speed tranny is the car. Yes, guys that not a typo they used a damn truck tranny for the car to save money but, the thing was bullet proof.
if your not in traffic during that 80 miles, manual might be best. i live in an urban area where every mile is a traffic jam so i went auto.
- Also I have been looking for a dark metallic gray color but, doesn’t seem like Toyota offers it anymore is this true?
the first gen scion had flint mica which is actually lighter than the tc2's magnetic gray metallic. its the same dark gray as the camry and alot of other dark grays toyota has. it also has metallic flakes giving the color more depth.
03-30-2011, 03:23 PM
#9
rscot22,
Glad to have you on here. Not to get on your case too much, but there are already a number of threads on here which will answer most of your questions. But here's a brief overview.
My wife had an '08 IS350 she traded in last Fall. Obviously the IS350 was a little different than yours (including being an automatic), but when we test drove them, the main difference we saw between the 250 and 350 was raw power. So on to the comparison.
- Ride will be similar. Suspension on the IS wasn't bad, but I never thought it was to die for either. Since the IS was the sporty Lexus, it's ride wasn't as smooth as other Lexus cars, so you shouldn't notice much difference. tC will float a bit more than the IS as you near triple digit speeds. The IS cornered a little better too, but I think that had more to do with tires than vehicle as it had just as much body roll as the tC.
- There are some rattles, but nothing excessive. As some of the others have said, driverside speakers will eventually cause rattle (about 3K miles as I recall), but there's a fairly easy fix outlined in another thread here.
- Go with the manual. The tC clutch and transmission are surprisingly pleasant for a $20K car. I can't speak to the MT on the IS, but I've driven many different MTs and this one is better than most at this price point.
- Magnetic Gray Metallic is the way to go! It's almost the exact same color as the Charcoal Gray IS.
Couple other things you'll notice different between the IS and the tC:
- tC has a roomier back seat. Wife got rid of her car partially for the payment, but mainly to get a bigger back seat because our daughter would kick the front seats. She can't reach the front seats in the tC.
- tC is much louder than the IS. That was always my favorite part of my wife's car was wide open throttle at highway speeds and all you really heard was something like whirring.
- tC seats are better for long trips, but don't hold you in as well.
Hope this helps!
Glad to have you on here. Not to get on your case too much, but there are already a number of threads on here which will answer most of your questions. But here's a brief overview.
My wife had an '08 IS350 she traded in last Fall. Obviously the IS350 was a little different than yours (including being an automatic), but when we test drove them, the main difference we saw between the 250 and 350 was raw power. So on to the comparison.
- Ride will be similar. Suspension on the IS wasn't bad, but I never thought it was to die for either. Since the IS was the sporty Lexus, it's ride wasn't as smooth as other Lexus cars, so you shouldn't notice much difference. tC will float a bit more than the IS as you near triple digit speeds. The IS cornered a little better too, but I think that had more to do with tires than vehicle as it had just as much body roll as the tC.
- There are some rattles, but nothing excessive. As some of the others have said, driverside speakers will eventually cause rattle (about 3K miles as I recall), but there's a fairly easy fix outlined in another thread here.
- Go with the manual. The tC clutch and transmission are surprisingly pleasant for a $20K car. I can't speak to the MT on the IS, but I've driven many different MTs and this one is better than most at this price point.
- Magnetic Gray Metallic is the way to go! It's almost the exact same color as the Charcoal Gray IS.
Couple other things you'll notice different between the IS and the tC:
- tC has a roomier back seat. Wife got rid of her car partially for the payment, but mainly to get a bigger back seat because our daughter would kick the front seats. She can't reach the front seats in the tC.
- tC is much louder than the IS. That was always my favorite part of my wife's car was wide open throttle at highway speeds and all you really heard was something like whirring.
- tC seats are better for long trips, but don't hold you in as well.
Hope this helps!
03-30-2011, 03:35 PM
#10
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Waynesboro, PA
Posts: 20
rscot22,
Glad to have you on here. Not to get on your case too much, but there are already a number of threads on here which will answer most of your questions. But here's a brief overview.
My wife had an '08 IS350 she traded in last Fall. Obviously the IS350 was a little different than yours (including being an automatic), but when we test drove them, the main difference we saw between the 250 and 350 was raw power. So on to the comparison.
- Ride will be similar. Suspension on the IS wasn't bad, but I never thought it was to die for either. Since the IS was the sporty Lexus, it's ride wasn't as smooth as other Lexus cars, so you shouldn't notice much difference. tC will float a bit more than the IS as you near triple digit speeds. The IS cornered a little better too, but I think that had more to do with tires than vehicle as it had just as much body roll as the tC.
- There are some rattles, but nothing excessive. As some of the others have said, driverside speakers will eventually cause rattle (about 3K miles as I recall), but there's a fairly easy fix outlined in another thread here.
- Go with the manual. The tC clutch and transmission are surprisingly pleasant for a $20K car. I can't speak to the MT on the IS, but I've driven many different MTs and this one is better than most at this price point.
- Magnetic Gray Metallic is the way to go! It's almost the exact same color as the Charcoal Gray IS.
Couple other things you'll notice different between the IS and the tC:
- tC has a roomier back seat. Wife got rid of her car partially for the payment, but mainly to get a bigger back seat because our daughter would kick the front seats. She can't reach the front seats in the tC.
- tC is much louder than the IS. That was always my favorite part of my wife's car was wide open throttle at highway speeds and all you really heard was something like whirring.
- tC seats are better for long trips, but don't hold you in as well.
Hope this helps!
Glad to have you on here. Not to get on your case too much, but there are already a number of threads on here which will answer most of your questions. But here's a brief overview.
My wife had an '08 IS350 she traded in last Fall. Obviously the IS350 was a little different than yours (including being an automatic), but when we test drove them, the main difference we saw between the 250 and 350 was raw power. So on to the comparison.
- Ride will be similar. Suspension on the IS wasn't bad, but I never thought it was to die for either. Since the IS was the sporty Lexus, it's ride wasn't as smooth as other Lexus cars, so you shouldn't notice much difference. tC will float a bit more than the IS as you near triple digit speeds. The IS cornered a little better too, but I think that had more to do with tires than vehicle as it had just as much body roll as the tC.
- There are some rattles, but nothing excessive. As some of the others have said, driverside speakers will eventually cause rattle (about 3K miles as I recall), but there's a fairly easy fix outlined in another thread here.
- Go with the manual. The tC clutch and transmission are surprisingly pleasant for a $20K car. I can't speak to the MT on the IS, but I've driven many different MTs and this one is better than most at this price point.
- Magnetic Gray Metallic is the way to go! It's almost the exact same color as the Charcoal Gray IS.
Couple other things you'll notice different between the IS and the tC:
- tC has a roomier back seat. Wife got rid of her car partially for the payment, but mainly to get a bigger back seat because our daughter would kick the front seats. She can't reach the front seats in the tC.
- tC is much louder than the IS. That was always my favorite part of my wife's car was wide open throttle at highway speeds and all you really heard was something like whirring.
- tC seats are better for long trips, but don't hold you in as well.
Hope this helps!
The one that thing has always kept me with a Lexus is service. They literally bend over backwards to keep there customers happy.
Thank you for your input sir it is much appreciated.
P.S. my IS250 is that dark gray you speak of and that's why I want to find a scion in that color I loved it. But hate how lexus/Toyota/Scion paint is so fragile and chips so easily.
03-30-2011, 03:48 PM
#11
^ Very true on the service. Best service I've seen and it really wasn't much more than service at a Ford or Chevy dealer and much less than at BMW.
As for the paint, I got the clear shield option. I'm not a huge fan, but after all the complaints about chipping paint, I'm starting to recommend it. I have 13,500 miles on my tC2 and not a single paint chip.
As for the paint, I got the clear shield option. I'm not a huge fan, but after all the complaints about chipping paint, I'm starting to recommend it. I have 13,500 miles on my tC2 and not a single paint chip.
03-30-2011, 05:46 PM
#12
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Waynesboro, PA
Posts: 20
^ Very true on the service. Best service I've seen and it really wasn't much more than service at a Ford or Chevy dealer and much less than at BMW.
As for the paint, I got the clear shield option. I'm not a huge fan, but after all the complaints about chipping paint, I'm starting to recommend it. I have 13,500 miles on my tC2 and not a single paint chip.
As for the paint, I got the clear shield option. I'm not a huge fan, but after all the complaints about chipping paint, I'm starting to recommend it. I have 13,500 miles on my tC2 and not a single paint chip.
03-30-2011, 06:00 PM
#13
Toyota doesn't sell them, but I think there are some companies out there that do, though I'm not entirely sure. I'm one of the few who thinks rubber floor mats are for trucks and not cars. 
03-30-2011, 06:11 PM
#15
I bought some CHEAP rubber mats from target...maybe less than $10 for a 4 piece set
they are really thin and i usually put them over the carpet ones when its raining (or i know my(or my passengers) shoes will get dirty
and when i'm not using them i just throw them in the trunk, under the carpet-on top of the spare tire
they are really thin and i usually put them over the carpet ones when its raining (or i know my(or my passengers) shoes will get dirty
and when i'm not using them i just throw them in the trunk, under the carpet-on top of the spare tire
03-30-2011, 07:07 PM
#16
Junior Member
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 17
I bought some CHEAP rubber mats from target...maybe less than $10 for a 4 piece set
they are really thin and i usually put them over the carpet ones when its raining (or i know my(or my passengers) shoes will get dirty
and when i'm not using them i just throw them in the trunk, under the carpet-on top of the spare tire
they are really thin and i usually put them over the carpet ones when its raining (or i know my(or my passengers) shoes will get dirty
and when i'm not using them i just throw them in the trunk, under the carpet-on top of the spare tire
^^^^^^GOOD STRATEGY^^^
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